dark faerie 06 - ever dead (14 page)

“Dulci?” he asked, holding out and taking her hand in his, enjoying the tingling in his arm at her touch. “What thoughts could bring so much sadness to the face of my favorite oracle?”

Dulci returned his smile with a strained one of her own.

“There is something else I need to show you,” she replied then.

Turning the book on her lap back to the original page, she then handed the book over to Hank.

“You will perhaps notice something there that you didn’t know before.”

He looked down at the beautiful writing, seeing his name at the bottom of the page. Noticing something else, he looked up in surprise.

“Howie had magic too?”

Dulci nodded with a small smile. “He did indeed! It is
extremely
rare for two in the same generation to have the power. It is only possible in twins, which is also extremely rare, especially in the lineage of a wizard. Twin wizards are
very
powerful!”

Emotions came flooding back again as Hank thought about his brother. “It’s too bad that Howie didn’t live,” he said with conviction as he turned his eyes toward Dulci. “We could have teamed up to whip some Unseelie ass!”

Dulci couldn’t help but laugh at Hank’s proclamation, her melodious voice filling the room with sweetness as she placed her hand on his arm.

His heart beat wildly in his chest at her touch.

I could get used to this,
he thought to himself.

He noticed Dulci smiling knowingly at him before she continued.

“The souls of most beings don’t die, Hank. They live on in perpetuity, many times watching over those that that they have loved in this life.”

He nodded thoughtfully. “I’ve felt that way before…like Howie is still with me.”

A warm glow emanated out of Dulci before she spoke again, her eyes bright with the knowledge she was about to share.

“He is, Hank…he is here with you now…standing right behind you.”

***

Hank jumped out of his seat and turned to stare at the space behind the chair. Although he was hopeful of seeing his brother again, he was equally creeped out at the thought of Howie skulking around behind him.

“He is laughing, Hank,” Dulci grinned as she looked back behind the settee. “He is happy that you now know of his presence.”

Dulci laughed out loud then, “He is also exceedingly thrilled that he gave you a fright!”

Hank’s face turned red.

“Jerk,” he mumbled as he sat back down next to Dulci.

“He is
very
happy now, Hank. He said he can’t wait to get started!”

Confusions crossed Hank’s face as he spoke.

“Get started with what?”

Dulci’s eyes lit up, “With training! As I said before, twin wizards are very powerful…even if one of them is no longer on this plane of existence.”

Hank grinned at her words, wanting to fist-bump his brother.

“Will I ever be able to see him…to talk to him?”

“Absolutely.” Dulci answered confidently. “After a time you will even consider it second nature.”

“Fantastic,” Hank breathed, feeling somewhat complete for the first time in a long time. “What does he…look like?” The thought of seeing his brother as a child fighting with him was somewhat disturbing.

Dulci gave him a sympathetic look. “He looks just like you. He’s grown with you, shared your triumphs, your pain, your suffering, your excitement. He has lived vicariously through you.”

He scratched his head. Emotions were running rampant across his brain. Mostly the feeling of sadness for what his brother should’ve experienced.

Dulci’s face once again showed concern however, and Hank was at a loss as to why. Handing the book back to him, she sat back and stared at him.

“Although that was
one
of the things I wanted to show you,” she started, “There is yet one other.”

Confused, he lowered his eyes once again to the pages on his lap. Smiling when he once again saw Howie’s name, the smile disappeared when his focus moved up on the page.

His jaw dropping, he looked back to Dulci for confirmation of what he just discovered.

“It’s true…your mom also had magic within her.”

Hank thought back in time, running through the life he experienced until he was ten.

“I don’t remember her doing anything magical,” he mumbled in disbelief.

Dulci shook her head adamantly. “She was never trained. Tamaki thought it was the right thing to do since she would never be able to get to Faerie alone for her training…he considered it too dangerous to let her know.”

Hank nodded, taking in the sadness as he thought about his parents. He also thought of Tamaki, how he suffered with the knowledge of his magic, unable to even pass it on to his own daughter…in fear for her life.

“He was a great man,” he mumbled, “Sacrificing all of that for his only daughter.”

Dulci nodded sadly. “Yet in the end…it didn’t matter.”

Hank was slow to pick up on the tone of her voice when she said it, turning toward her only after nearly a minute had passed.

“What do you mean?” he asked then.”

Dulci remained quiet for a time, staring instead at her hands folded on her lap.

When she finally looked up, there was a tear in her eye.

“The accident…the one that killed your parents…the one that nearly killed you? It wasn’t an accident at all…it was Pironin.”

“What are you saying Dulci?” he asked, feeling lightheaded as he spoke the words, certain that he already knew the answer yet unwilling to admit it to himself.

“Pironin instigated the accident, Hank,” Dulci wept, a tear marring her perfect face. He was hoping to kill off two generations of your family in one fell swoop. Had I not pulled you out of the car at the last second…”

Chapter 26

Thwack, thwack, thwack, thwack, thwack!

Hank had started early, pummeling the sparing dummy for forty five minutes straight. Finally exhausted, he let the staff drop to the floor before he too let gravity drag him down to his back.

Breathing hard from his efforts, the heavy workout still hadn’t eliminated the seething anger that Dulci’s words had filled him with.

Pironin!

The word dripped from his tongue through the ragged breathing.

The pain of the deliberate loss brought about by Pironin’s own hand filled his soul with anguish and the need for revenge.

Dulci had tried to calm him the night before…anguished at his reaction, yet knowing that it had to come to pass.

Filled with sorrow for Hank’s pain, she had to remind him of his earlier reluctance to end a life.

This is the type of being you will be up against,
she cajoled,
one that would snuff your life-force out in a second. Without remorse. Without feeling.

He could barely remember her words, his rage being so overpowering and complete as he stood shaking in her cottage the night before.

I’m sorry, Hank…truly sorry to break this to you this way…but you needed to know…you needed to feel the soul of your enemy in your heart…how little he will care if he destroys you…

He had screamed in rage.

Now you must learn to control the anger you feel,
Dulci continued,
for while you now know the nature of Pironin, killing him may not be the only option when the time comes. You
must
have the wisdom to act…
not
out of anger, but with the whole knowledge of his devastating abilities. You
must
be able to discern what is best for you…
and
for Faerie…

Even as she spoke these words, he still resisted them.

There could be
no
outcome for Pironin that could possibly make it all right
except
for death!

Luci took that moment to lay her head on Hank’s belly. Startled at the canine’s touch, he dropped his hand to her head, automatically scratching her behind her ears.

As much as he fought it, he could feel the anger suddenly start draining away at her touch.

“I’m sorry Luci.” He whispered as she whimpered in reply. “I didn’t pay much attention to you last night…I’m afraid I lost my head.”

Speaking the words out loud seemed to calm him further.

Pushing himself up to a sitting position, he leaned back against the wall. Luci moved with him, ending up with her head on his lap.

Hank knew Dulci was right…he would have to channel his anger into his preparations of the war ahead.

War!

The word sent a shiver down his spine…it was the first time he admitted to himself that this was where he was headed.

It gave him pause.

How was it that he was readying himself for a war, while two days before his biggest worry was a few piles of ash?

Shaking his head, Hank worried that he wasn’t up for the task. He was trained in martial arts of course, and he could handle a weapon as well as anyone. But up to this point in his life, his focus had been on protecting others.

To protect and serve!

War was a completely different thing! A veritable chess game full of tactics and diversions that
always
involved bloodshed…massive amounts of bloodshed…

Looking down, he smiled grimly at Luci as he started scratching her behind the ears again.

“Why am I considering this girl?” he asked the canine worriedly. “Simply because Dulci has told me it is my destiny? I’ll admit to wanting to destroy Pironin now for what he has done to my family, but why should I care about the rest of it? Faerie is a place of dreams and magic…something most people don’t even believe in anymore.”

Hank was silent for a long moment before he continued.

“
Why should I care?
” he whispered finally.

Closing his eyes with sudden fatigue, images started flashing through his mind.

There was Tamaki, handing the staff to Hank reverently. He’d been appreciative of course…but it was just a stick! Although outwardly given to aid in his recuperation, even at ten years old, he knew a crutch would have been a better choice.

He didn’t question his grandfather though. He respected Tamaki more than any other, so if he thought the old piece of wood was essential, Hank would make it work.

Then there was the incessant training. Tamaki had been a persistent taskmaster…pushing Hank for years on end until he mastered every nuance of the art.

Later on, Hank had given some thought to starting a Dojo and teaching others his skills, but Tamaki had adamantly refused to consider the notion.

“Some have strength of knowledge, some of courage…some will teach, others will act.”

Tamaki had then turned away from Hank before finishing with, “We will speak of this no more.”

And that had been the end of that, although Hank had never known the reason for Tamaki’s firm proclamation. He
had
however, taken it to heart, assuming that Tamaki had meant to find a useful outlet for his skills.

And he thought he
had
when he’d chosen law enforcement as a career.

Had Tamaki meant something else?

Had he been assuming that this would happen?

A different memory suddenly popped into Hank’s head, causing his spine to chill.

No way!
He whispered with the memory,
No frickin way!

Telling Luci to stand, he pushed himself off of the floor and reached for the discarded staff on the floor.

Studying it intently for a few seconds, he then positioned his feet. It had been a long time since he had done this and he took a few moments to remember the exact move.

Grasping the staff in both hands he then lifted it above his head while simultaneously spinning it a half turn. Bringing it down level with his shoulder in his right hand, he then smoothly thrust the rounded end out toward the sparring dummy with a lunge, a short kiai shout escaping his lips as he did so.

The end of the staff manifested itself once again into a snake!

Shocked at the outcome of his experiment, Hank nevertheless held the staff steady in his hand, watching the head of the snake as it sought out its prey.

After a few seconds of this, he reversed the move, thankful that the staff returned to wood in the process.

He grinned at Luci. “Did you see that?” he exclaimed excitedly.

Luci returned his look with an indifferent stare.

He’d remembered a very short Kata that Tamaki had taught him years before. It was called Habu, or The Snake. Such a short and seemingly ineffective move had confused Hank when Tamaki had taught it to him.

Asking his grandfather about it, Tamaki had merely smiled, explaining that in ancient times it was said that they could transform their staff into a snake with the move.

Hank smiled at the memory. “
In the ancient times huh?”
he whispered as he remembered something else that excited him.

It wasn’t the only short, unexplainable kata that Tamaki had taught him!

Taking a seat on the bench close to Luci, Hank was reflective.

Tamaki
had
taught him magic…Hank had just not known it…or been ready to act on it!

Looking at Luci again, he reached out and rubbed his hand in her fur.

“Maybe I
am
supposed to be here Luci. Maybe it
is
my destiny to go to war in the land of Faerie…”

Picking up his phone, he noticed the time.

“Crap! We’re going to be late for work!”

Pushing to his feet, he turned toward the shower. “Give me five minutes and I’ll be ready to go,” he called back over his shoulder.

Luci sat where she was, panting while watching him until he left the room. 

Orbs suddenly appeared to her right as Dulci appeared with a worried look.